Live Fire Reloads and Transitions (Video)

The same principles that apply to riding a bike also apply to defensive shooting. The acts of drawing a firearm, firing and reloading require sophisticated muscle movements. If you haven’t committed these complex actions to muscle memory by the time you find yourself in a deadly situation, you‘ll be in trouble, and your panicked mind may not be able to coordinate the actions required to save your life.

Training makes you fast and consistent and drills get you familiar with your own ability, speed, and accuracy. This is why Live Fire Reloads and Transition Drills are key to being fast and effective in a tense situation.

Each situation warrants a particular method of reloading—for example, some circumstances require retaining your magazine, while others don’t. For the purpose of reloading effectively, we suggest practicing:

Multiple scenarios

Emergency reloads

Tactical reloads

Feeling when the handgun is empty

Looking for potential threats while reloading your weapon

As a side note, if you aren’t already behind cover and you’re caught in the open, taking a side-step laterally as you reload can maximize your chances of not being hit. Lateral movement is the hardest kind for your opposition to track, and can give you that fraction of a second extra as you get that next round in the chamber. It has to be practiced too, or you definitely won’t be able to do it effectively under live fire.

Check out our video that shows Live fire Reloads & Transitions with a pistol and rifle.